in regards to acetone on "zincolns"

aballein · February 16, 2007 10:59AM

so i had a 2005-P lincoln that i wanted to remove a few spots from..just to see if it would work. Well it sat in a cup of pure acetone for 2 days now and i just checked on it.....the copper layer appears to be completely gone from the reverse and the rim(the obverse was facing down)!!! Is this normal for acetone. The penny was BU when i put it in the cup 2 days ago. On the plus side the spots are gone though!

Type2 · February 16, 2007 11:03AM

you are not supose to keep it in for two days just dip or rub with a Q-tip and rinse with mild soap.I dont think your supose to use acetone on coper

Cam40 · February 16, 2007 11:06AM

this is odd to think that acetone would dissolve the copper
it shouldnt if its really acetone.

aballein · February 16, 2007 11:12AM

i will try and snap a few pics when i get back from dinner...very strange though..

Type2 · February 16, 2007 11:18AM

you know my friend used taco bell hot sauce once ha,ha it did look nice but I would not do it to a coin I like

pb2y · February 16, 2007 11:32AM

The cent is vanishing in other ways also

ldhair · February 16, 2007 11:39AM

Acetone is not an acid. It can't eat metal, only organics.

What type of cup are you using?

clackamas · February 16, 2007 11:43AM

<< you are not supose to keep it in for two days just dip or rub with a Q-tip and rinse with mild soap.I dont think your supose to use acetone on coper >>

Acetone is generally fine for copper. But I bet 10 bucks it is not going to do jack to spots. The spots wil not go away with anything that would not harm the coin even more.

aballein · February 16, 2007 12:17PM

so ive come to the conclusion that i cant photograph coins, especially shiny ones..so no pics. but if you could imagine a BU 2005 copper penny obverse and flip it over to see a "polished" zinc cent then you would be imagining the penny in question. And for the record i am using 100% Acetone in a "normal" teacup with a piece of glass covering the cup to prevent evaporation. I also have a merc in the cup along with some pre-82 pennies..all have been soaking for at least 2 days..some longer. None of the coins have any premium on them because this is basically a test to see the effects of acetone on coins. i have been able to remove alot of crud off the merc with a q-tip and a little crud off a pre-82 penny. I have seen no adverse effects on any of the other coinage..just the zincoln. Any thoughs as to why this is happening?

Tyler1924S · February 16, 2007 12:34PM

As long as you are just experimenting... On a new Zincoln, (w/fresh out of the roll color) try a 5-10 second dip in Lime-A-Way
This is the best 2007D I was able to find in the last roll I searched. It was full of spots prior to this pic. Obviously, rinsing must be thorough, press dry. Purposes of experimentation only.

aus3000tin · February 16, 2007 12:45PM

Is it me or does Lincoln look mad on that cent?
Maybe he knows his time is up!

Thanks,

Chris

aballein · February 16, 2007 12:52PM

i might just have to try that...i wish i had that 2007-D penny though..cant find one anywhere around Ohio.

Tyler1924S · February 16, 2007 12:57PM

As far as what happened to your 2005, the Zincolns can't be submersed in any sort of liquid for that period of time. The copper plating is not adequate protection. Fluids seep into the zinc and react chemically. They will rot from the inside out, and/or the copper will seperate, depending on the amount of time and what you've put them in.

aballein · February 16, 2007 1:00PM

thanks for clearing that up for me..its pretty cool really, im gonna try to get the obverse copper to disappear next

Tyler1924S · February 16, 2007 1:09PM

<< i wish i had that 2007D penny though >>

I don't collect any moderns (and I don't dip anything that is part of my collection), however it's always interesting to go through fresh rolls from the mint. A few years back, I searched several 2003 & 2004 rolls, both P & D. The D's were really thrashed. The best I could find out of a couple hundred, were several I would call MS66. With one roll of 2007D's, I was able to come up with two MS67 coins. Appears Denver took better care of them this year.

clackamas · February 16, 2007 1:13PM

<< As long as you are just experimenting... On a new Zincoln, (w/fresh out of the roll color) try a 5-10 second dip in Lime-A-Way
] >>

YIKES - I guees a coin freshout of the roll would be fine but I would not attempt it on a coin of any value, unless I gave it a year or more to see what it does.

aballein · February 16, 2007 1:19PM

it seems like Denver is taking care of the prezzy bux too according to the posts that ive read on here..i got a roll of prezzys for philly and they sucked, could swore that they had been in circulation for years...denver is the new san fran apparently

Tyler1924S · February 16, 2007 1:19PM

Just as an example of what can happen to these zinc coins... Recently, I found three Zincolns lying next to a curb (near grass and sprinkler system at a cemetary). All of them were rotted-out. All that was left of two of them was a thin copper shell, both coins were completely hollow, just skins. The insides were gone. Just exposure to water and probably fertilizer.

Tyler1924S · February 16, 2007 1:22PM

<< denver is the new san fran aparrently >>

That's good to hear. For awhile, it looked like Denver was tumbling all the coins in a giant vat...

Writersblock · February 18, 2007 1:15AM

<< As far as what happened to your 2005, the Zincolns can't be submersed in any sort of liquid for that period of time. The copper plating is not adequate protection. Fluids seep into the zinc and react chemically. They will rot from the inside out, and/or the copper will seperate, depending on the amount of time and what you've put them in >>

Acetone is an organic solvent which should have no effect on metals. But I can't explain what he is reporting happened to his cent unless the acetone is leaching some kind of organics out of the teacup and depositing it on the cent.

ksteelheader · February 18, 2007 1:23AM

<< As long as you are just experimenting... On a new Zincoln, (w/fresh out of the roll color) try a 5-10 second dip in Lime-A-Way
This is the best 2007D I was able to find in the last roll I searched. It was full of spots prior to this pic. Obviously, rinsing must be thorough, press dry. Purposes of experimentation only.
>>

Lime-A-Way...

6.0 Spill or Leak Procedures
Use proper protective equipment

6.1 Cleanup: Rinse small amounts of to drain where possible, or mop up and rinse area
thuroughlywith water. Large spills should be well diluted with water before sewering.
6.2 Waste Disposal: Consult state and local authorities for restrictions on disposal of
chemical waste. this product is corrosive (D002) according to RCRA criteria.

fastrudy · February 18, 2007 2:21AM

Does anybody know if acetone:

reacts with zinc?

reacts with zinc oxide?

is an electrolyte?

If yes to any of these three questions, then perhaps there was a tiny hole in the copper skin that allowed acetone to get to the zinc layer.

aballein · February 18, 2007 2:42AM

a little update for you guys..the obverse is starting to look like the reverse and rim..before long i will have a zinc cent! i will try to find a scale to weigh it on to confirm that the copper is really gone and not somehow tarnished.

Shamika · February 18, 2007 3:12AM

Lime-Away is PHOSPHORIC ACID which explains the pink color your 2007-D cent now has! I would never bring this near my coins.

DieClash · February 18, 2007 3:16AM

Kaboom Shower, tub and tile cleaner, experiment.

Before it looked like this one:

Murphy · February 18, 2007 3:19AM

Acetone on silver - it's great for cleaning silver coins only if you dip them for a few seconds and not soak them for any lenghth of time. And if you dip them more than once you will risk ruining a perfectly good coin. They will tarnish gray if soaked.

Acetone on copper - acetone will clean copper to a mint-white finish, but beware, the finish will fade over a few days to a much darker reddish-copper color or even an ugly toned coin. You can ruin a cent if you dip it in acetone. Edit: Kaboom acts similar on copper.

Acetone on zinc - turns it black!

Tyler1924S · February 18, 2007 4:09AM

<< Lime-AWay Is Phosphoric Acid which explains the pink color your 2007D now has. I would never bring this near my coins >>

That makes two of us. We are talking about an experiment with pocket change, certainly not part of anything that would make it into my collection. Had he used the 5 second dip, his 2005 penny would still be in one piece. And the commercial dip used on millions of silver coins, not exactly one of the "friendly" acids. There is no discernable difference in color between the two 2007D's and the 48 that were not dipped. Also, I have some 2003's & 2004's (with the junk coins) that were dipped in this 3-4 years ago with no adverse effects. Yes, it's an acid, hence the spots gone in seconds.

in regards to acetone on "zincolns"

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in regards to acetone on &quot;zincolns&quot;

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in regards to acetone on "zincolns"